Transit Dialog has shared my essay on my writing process a few days before my book launch. I wrote this piece while my book was being published. ✍️
"𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘣𝘣𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴."
𝗦𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝘆 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆
𝘉𝘺 𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘢 𝘓𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘴
Unlike most crocheters, I did not learn the craft in school. Instead, I learned how to crochet from a DIY box from Target during a summer vacation spent in LA. My first project was a slim scarf, and that was it.
I later rediscovered crochet after learning how to knit during the 2018 edition of the "Knitting Adventure" tour at the storied Banaue Rice Terraces. The tour was hosted by Knitting Expedition, a social enterprise that trains mamas in Banaue to knit plush toys, accessories, and home decor.
As expected, Ifugao women are innately skilled in knitting, and have become expert makers in no time.
Joining their tour was a blast! It was my childhood dream to visit the terraces, and I simply did not have the chance to go there before. Finally, a painful breakup motivated me to seek new experiences, and knitting became one of my goals.
The Banaue tour let me see the famous terraces and interact with the friendly locals, while I learned the basics of knitting from the women who are so gifted with their hands. By the time I reached Manila, I was hungry for YouTube tutorials to supplement my knowledge on my newfound hobby.
After a few months, I found knitting to be too slow for my liking. This led me to revisit crochet. I picked up a yarn and a hook from a craft store in the mall, and it all came back to me. I managed to crochet an infinity shawl through muscle memory.
From there, I continued making shawls and scarves for myself and my loved ones. I loved crochet so much that I had this belief that I did not create for profit’s sake. Instead, I wanted crochet to become my safe space, and my happy hobby. It was never an option for money-making.
I brought my yarn bag with me wherever I went. I crocheted during seminars, in between meetings, and during coffee breaks. Crochet became a natural extension of myself. It helped me beat boredom during my long commutes and alleviated my anxiety before interviews and important meetings. I was able to churn out ideas for my blog while making my scarves.
They say that the best ideas emerge while bathing or driving. For me, the best ideas come to me while crocheting. Maybe this ideation process is the reason why crochet became an addiction and a source of joy.
When the lockdown was imposed in 2020, I thought of ways to contribute to society as the Covid-19 pandemic raged on. Luckily, I found an organization online that collected handmade earsavers for healthcare workers. I joined them as a volunteer, and I ended up donating more than two thousand earsavers to medical heroes in various hospitals.
My passion for volunteerism was further ignited when I found another organization for crocheters. This time, they collect octopus amigurumi dolls and beanies for premature babies in government NICUs. I donated 76 octopus amigurumi dolls and 60 preemie beanies. All of these handmade donations were made possible because of my love for crochet.
My ability to crochet for hours on end has inspired me to apply myself to the other aspects of my life. I am also a writer, and with four years of blogging under my belt, I realized that it was time to fulfill my childhood dream of publishing my own book. I wrote the book using the same discipline I acquired through crocheting. I worked on a certain number of words a day, then I took breaks to refresh and recharge my mind.
After writing my manuscript and several productive meetings with a leading publisher, I am proud to share that my self-published book, "Speak Blog Live", will finally be released soon. It is currently undergoing registration and publishing.
It is a nonfiction book that teaches you the discipline and habit of regularly writing on one’s blog. I give examples on how one can enrich his or her life in order to be inspired to regularly compose blog entries with a unique voice. I am so excited to share this book to the world!
Who knew that my crochet habit and hobby would lead me to writing a book? Indeed, a solid work ethic and a healthy crafting mindset can open doors and opportunities. The pandemic may have forced me to stay home, but it has also switched on my passions for crafting, volunteering, writing, and self-publishing.
It is my dream that more people will discover hobbies that enrich their lives and inspire them to become the best versions of themselves.
𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘢 𝘎𝘢𝘪𝘭 𝘉. 𝘓𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘦𝘣𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘦, 𝘸𝘸𝘸.𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘢𝘮.𝘤𝘰𝘮, 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘺 2017. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴, 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘦𝘣𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘦. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴, 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘴. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘈𝘉 𝘏𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘜𝘈&𝘗.
𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘉𝘭𝘰𝘨 𝘓𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘖𝘤𝘵. 7, 2021.